Northern Adelbert languages explained

Northern Adelbert
Also Known As:	Adelbert Range  - Isumrud Strait Pihom–Isumrud
Region:	Adelbert Range, Madang Province, Papua New Guinea
Familycolor:	Papuan
Fam1:	Northeast New Guinea?
Fam2:	Madang
Fam3:	Central Madang
Glotto:	grea1298
Glottoname:	Greater Northern Adelbert
Glottorefname:	Greater Northern Adelbert
Glotto2:	croi1234
Glottoname2:	Croisilles

The Northern Adelbert or Pihom–Isumrud languages are a family of twenty languages in the Madang stock of New Guinea. The occupy the coastal northern Adelbert Range of mountains directly opposite Karkar Island, as opposed to the Southern Adelbert languages, another branch of Madang.

Malcolm Ross posited a "linkage" connecting the Northern Adelbert languages with the Mabuso languages, and named this group Croisilles, as the two families bracket Cape Croisilles (Northern Adelbert to the north, Mabuso to the south). However, Ross never claimed Croisilles was an actual language family, and other researchers have rejected the connection.

Languages

There are approximately 20 Northern Adelbert languages.

Below is a comparison of Northern Adelbert language names in Pick (2020)^[1] and Z'graggen (1980).^[2] A few alternate names from Capell (1952) are also given.^[3]

Pick (2020)	Z'graggen (1980)	ISO 639-3
		koz
	Bunabun (Z'graggen 1980), Bunubun (Capell 1952)	buq
		mlp
		bie
		dmc
	Musar (Z'graggen 1980), Amben (Petir et al 1996^[4]), Vanembere (Capell 1952)	mmi
		bql
		kgu
		xow
		sks
		tnh
		ped
	Tani (Z'graggen 1980), Banar (Capell 1952)	pla
		mkr
		mhl
		mjj
		mvq
		wnb
		abw
		hih
		prw
		ukg
		wnu
		wsk
		ybm
		yrw

Classification

Croisilles was first posited by Malcolm Ross (1995), not as an actual language family, but as a linkage. It was a merger of Wurm's Pihom-Isumrud-Mugil and Mabuso stocks, each of which contained 25–30 languages. Pick (2017, 2020) and Usher reject the merger, and provisionally the inclusion of Mugil (Bargam), though Pick retains the name. Usher disambiguates the (non-Mabuso) family as 'Adelbert Range'.

Usher (2020)

Timothy Usher classifies the languages as follows.^[5]

• Adelbert Range  - Isumrud Strait
  • Kowan (Isumrud Strait): Waskia, Korak (Amako)
  • (North) Adelbert Range
    • Yamben
    • Omosan (Omosa River): Pal (Abasakur), Kobol (Koguman)
    • Gilagil River (old Isumrud proper)
      • Dimir (Gavak)
      • [old Mabuan]: Brem (Bunabun), Malas (Manep)
    • Northwest Adelbert Range (Mount Pihom)
      • Kaukombar River

Mala (Pay), Miani (Maiani, Tani), Maia (Pila, Saki)

• • • • Kumil–Timper
        • Kumil River

Bepour, Mauwake (Ulingan), Moere

• • • • • Tiboran River (Timper River): Musar; Wanambre; Kowaki, Mawak, Pamosu (Hinihon)
    • Mabulap–Numugen
      • Amaimon (Mabulap) isolate
      • Numugen River (see)

Pick (2020)

Below is Andrew Pick's (2020) classification of the Northern Adelbert languages.^[1]

• Northern Adelbert languages
  • Manep–Barem languages

Manep, Barem

• • Kumil–Tibor languages
    • Kumil languages

Mauwake, Bepour, Moere

• • • Tibor languages

Pamosu, Hember Avu, Mokati, Mawak, Kowaki

• • Numugen languages

Usan, Karian, Yaben, Yarawata, Parawen, Ukuriguma

• • Kaukombar languages

Maia, Mala, Miani, Maiani

• • Gavak

Pick (2017)

A quite similar internal classification was worked out independently by Pick (2017).^[6] Pick could not establish regular sound correspondences with Kobol–Pal (Omosan) or Amaimon (Mabulap), and thus leaves them out of the family.

• Northern Adelbert
  • Kumil–Tibor (*t- > s, *p- > f, *ŋ > zero)
    • Tibor [*-n > zero, *a > e]
      • Mokati (Wanambre)
      • (*k- > h, *C- > [−voice]) Kowaki, Mawak, Pamosu, Hember Avu (Musar)
    • Kumil [*k- *t- >, *C- > [−voice], *-k > zero]: Bepour, Mauwake, Moere
  • Kaukombar [*k- *ŋ *-n > zero]: Mala, Miani, Maiani, Maia
  • Manep–Barem [*-ŋ > n, *-g > ŋ, *wV > u]
    • Manep (Malas)
    • Barem (Brem)
  • Gabak (Dimir)
  • Numugen (*ŋ > n, 6 languages)
  • Amako–Waskia

Waskia, Korak

Pick notes that Barem and Malas share pronominal markers on the verbs 'to teach' and 'to show' that are unique to those two verbs.

Proto-language

Proto-Northern Adelbert
Familycolor:	Papuan
Target:	Northern Adelbert languages

A phonological reconstruction of Proto-Northern Adelbert has been proposed by Pick (2020).^[1]

Phonology

Pick (2020) reconstructs the phonemes of Proto-Northern Adelbert as:^[1]

	labial	alveolar	palatal	velar
unvoiced stops	p	t		k
voiced stops	b	d		g
nasals	m	n		ŋ
fricatives		s
laterals		l
rhotics		r
glides	w		y

Four vowels are reconstructed by Pick (2020): *a, *e, *i, *u. Although Northern Adelbert languages usually have the five vowels /a e i o u/, Pick (2020) does not consider *o to be reconstructable.

Pronouns

The Proto-Northern Adelbert pronouns are:^[1]

	SG	PL
1	ye	yin
2	ne	nin
3	we	win

Lexicon

Selected lexical reconstructions from Pick (2020) are listed below.

Animal names! gloss !! Proto-Northern Adelbert

	mudir
ant sp.	susur
bird	muga(n/ŋ)
bird	nebek
	wisir
	teteri
	areker
	tuar
	melik
fly (insect)	kuduruk
	kepak
	malabuŋ
	idik
	takaw
	usa
	baram
	udir(a/e)m
	gun
	kasin
night bird	mum
night bird of prey	kilal
	k(a/e)kawin
	buruk
pig, marsupial game animal	wa
	pia
	duag
	sisimur
	maur

Plant names! gloss !! Proto-Northern Adelbert

aibika greens	iruar
aibika greens	maiw
	bik
	kudi
betel pepper vine	kupi
	kidar
	keta
	magam
	pai
	mutar
	kamar
stinging nettle (Tok Pisin: salat)	k(u/a)bum
	kai
	mam
tree	ŋam
tree sp. (Tok Pisin: mangas)	teber
	kuari
type of greens	muduru

Material culture! gloss !! Proto-Northern Adelbert

	ben
	kemi
	wag
	wag
house post	bugaŋ
	kibem
	siruw
platform, bed	badim
	baner
	uyaw
village	kuaw

Comparisons

Below is a list of Proto-Northern Adelbert forms that are descended from Proto-Trans–New Guinea.^[1]

gloss	Proto-Northern Adelbert	Proto-Trans–New Guinea
arm, hand	waben	mbena
older brother	bab	[mb]amba
blood	ked	ke(nj,s)a
heart	gemaŋ	kamu
neck, nape	kumaŋ	kuma(n, ŋ)
mosquito	kasin	kasin
die	um-	kumV-
sleep	in-	kin(i,u)[m]-
know, hear, see	ag- 'see'	nVŋg-
NEG	me (+verb)	ma- (+verb)
water	yag	ok[V]
leaf	tak	sasak

Further reading

• Ross, Malcolm. 2014. Proto-Croisilles. TransNewGuinea.org.
• Ross, Malcolm. 2014. Proto-Mabuso. TransNewGuinea.org.
• Ross, Malcolm. 2014. Proto-North-Adelbert. TransNewGuinea.org.
• Ross, Malcolm. 2014. Proto-Isumrud. TransNewGuinea.org.
• Ross, Malcolm. 2014. Proto-Pihom. TransNewGuinea.org.
• Ross, Malcolm. 2014. Proto-Tibor-Omosa. TransNewGuinea.org.
• Ross, Malcolm. 2014. Proto-Kaukombar. TransNewGuinea.org.
• Ross, Malcolm. 2014. Proto-Kumil. TransNewGuinea.org.
• Ross, Malcolm. 2014. Proto-Numugen. TransNewGuinea.org.

External links

• Current research on the Madang languages by Andrew Pick

Notes and References

1. PhD dissertation . Pick . Andrew . 2020 . A reconstruction of Proto-Northern Adelbert phonology and lexicon . University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa .
2. Z'graggen, J.A. A comparative word list of the Northern Adelbert Range languages, Madang Province, Papua New Guinea. D-31, xvi + 194 pages. Pacific Linguistics, The Australian National University, 1980.
3. Capell, Arthur. 1952. Languages of the Bogia District, New Guinea. Oceania 22(2), 130-147; 22(3), 178-207.
4. Petir, Amova, Dum Materem, Pakong Yapong, Sakel Mukarek, Moyang Okira, & Tim Platts-Mills. 1996. Useful Plants of Salembem Village, Madang Province, Papua New Guinea. Madang: Kristen Pres.
5. Usher, Timothy. 2020. Adelbert Range  - Isumrud Strait (NewGuineaWorld)
6. Pick . Andrew . 2017 . A Reconstruction of Proto-Croiselles Phonology and Lexicon . 23rd International Conference on Historical Linguistics . San Antonio, Texas, US. (video)